Sight
by noneko
Summary: DCC 14: He did not say anything. He simply looked down at her, the mask that covered his face shining dimly in the soft light. And then, she could see.


**Sight**

Disclaimer: Visas isn't mine. She's Obsidian/LucasArts'. Ah well.

She remembers the moment she stopped living.

She did not die in the literal sense; her steady breathing and regular pulse would negate that theory. It was her soul that perished, the essence of her being that was spirited away, that day long ago. She remembers it as if it were yesterday, but it was a long time ago.

There was nothing particularly special about the day itself: The mornings and evenings often blended together without much variation. The Jedi had arrived for their conclave, shining so brightly in the eyes of the Miraluka that it almost hurt to look at them.

She remembers watching them arrive with a mixture of fear and awe, as they swept through those gathered with the stolidity of monarchs. They were so different then anything she had ever seen.

They radiated a calmness and assurance that showed in the Force, channeling their auras into a concentrated flame that reached up towards the heavens like so many rising stars. It was a beautiful and terrifying sight, as those who could see solely through the Force were met by those who lived and breathed it. A sense sublime, amidst the relative tranquility.

The Jedi did not speak often; they were solemn and meditative, and a thousand worries seemed to weigh on their proud shoulders. They were discussing matters that pertained to the galaxy: matters that would shape the coming years as surely as a stonecutter shaped the rocks around him. And yet, they seemed lost.

Two wars in ten years had spread them thin, and for every face present, two were missing. She remembers times where the stoic facade broke, and their insecurities and inner turmoil had risen through the surface, revealing men and women at the core. The Force around them swirled and shifted, and flickered from blue to grey and back again faster then blaster shots.

An invisible pressure was upon them, and some of them simply could not handle it. And the Miraluka watched, saying nothing, doing nothing.

And the conclave had continued.

Dark whispers arose of a new Sith threat, which assailed the galaxy through assassins and stealth. Tales were told around the waning firelight of a new Sith Lord who swallowed planets as readily as one consumed food or drink.

But the Jedi still deliberated in their meeting, and time stretched on. She was not privy to the details of what went on behind closed doors, but she knew it was important. After all, the Jedi were the wisest of all, the protectors and maintainers of the galaxy. They were the only ones that could be trusted. They wouldn't let anything befall the people they were charged with.

Then he came.

Nothing foretold his arrival. One moment there was nothing—the next, he was there. His mutilated ship hovered ominously over the planet, casting a shadow of fear as well as darkness. And then everything changed.

It was an invasion of a different sort. There was no gunfire, no cannons. There was no smoke rising from destroyed buildings.

There was only silence.

The Jedi were unprepared. They had never expected someone to find them on the tiny colony on Katarr. They were just as panicked as the inhabitants. This assailant was different then anything they had ever seen. Other registered something in the Force, a brilliant dot of power in the minds of the Force sensitive. But with him, there was nothing.

She remembers the day as if it was a dream. How all the screaming tore through her senses, louder and more terrifying then anything she had ever heard. But when she stepped away from the Force to stop the bloodcurdling screams, there was nothing. There was not a sound to be heard. This was not a battle of blasters and ships. This was a battle that could solely be won through the Force.

And the Force was losing.

She remembers crying out in horror as everyone she knew dropped to the ground inexplicably. There were no wounds. There was nothing that indicated that there was anything wrong. Except for the silence. The Jedi drew their weapons, but looked up towards the sky helplessly. Even then, they knew there was nothing they could do. Even then, they knew they were going to die.

There was no familiar elation as their souls rose up into the heavens. There was no celebration of life after death, no comforting knowledge that they were someplace better. They hadn't joined the Force, they were ripped from it. And from this there was no return.

And, in the end, there was no one left. There was nothing to prevent his arrival. Except for her.

To this day, she does not know why she lived. Perhaps it was some cruel twist of fate that let her go on while so many others did not. Or maybe he could sense her, even then. At that time, she wasn't thinking about that. She just wanted to die.

He arrived on the planet quietly, with no fanfare. Still, she could not sense him. The dead surrounded her on all sides, and she wished she was among them. She remembers finding the bodies of her family and friends, and wondering why she, out of all of her race, was the once to survive. The Miraluka were gone, and the Jedi were gone. And there was only her. Then, suddenly, he was there. A swish of black against the painted night. The Force showed him as he was in life, dark and forbidding as the ship he traveled in.

He did not say anything. He simply looked down at her, the mask that covered his face shining dimly in the soft light. And then, she could _see_.

The Force was gone. There was nothing but the dark rocks of Katarr, devoid of any life. She remembers screaming and falling to the ground, clawing at the dirt beneath her. The dirt that she could _see._ It was horrible and frightening all at once. The things that she had found beautiful through the Force were revealed to be coarse and ugly. Everything she knew was revolting. The Miraluka lying dead in the streets, their mouths frozen in an expression of fear. The mountains, their dark shadows reaching across the plains, trying to swallow the rest of the planet in their massiveness. It all tore through her senses, showing her a horrible truth. Showing her that everything was going to wither and fade away. There was no beauty, there was no hope. And, right at that moment, she wanted it all to die.

That was the moment where she became something else. He had given her sight, and shown her the truth. The Force within her was disgusting, and useless, and appalling to her mind. It was better to let him do as he wished, to let him carry out his plans. With him as her master.

There was an unspoken agreement between them then. He didn't need her help: of that she was certain. His overwhelming desire to obliterate all life was all she could feel, but he needed no companions to help him do so. He only needed slaves. And, in that moment, she knew she would bow before him, servant to master. It was the only way she could stop the pain.

If there was nothing, then there would be no ugliness, no misery. For no one should live in the universe that she saw.

In that one moment, she knew the mantras the Jedi chanted had been wrong. There was no Force, no overwhelming power that could make things right. There was only death.

And in that moment, she stopped living. For when one served death and saw it visited upon countless worlds in countless star systems, one could not truly be alive. But she did not fear, all those nights she lay in her chambers, death lying heavily on her shoulders as his ravaged ship traveled towards the Core.

For in fear, lies death.

And she could not truly die.

**Author's Note:** This was written for the "Jeepers Creepers" contest on KFM. It took second place, which both astonished me and made me very thankful. I hope you all enjoy it!


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